Prowling, creeping and waiting in the dark was a beast so fearsome that it would send even the bravest man crying and shivering in fear.
'Creeeeeeaaaak!' cried the stairs as the beast slowly stomped up the stairs. As my room was closest to the stairs, I was actually afraid that it would eat me first.
STOMP
STOMP
The sound of stomps from the stairs had me stirring in my sleep and as it got louder, I stiffened up and listened. I cracked my eyes open, letting the morning light flood them as my head cleared and my line of sight got more focused.
It took a while for me to understand that I had to be awake and ready for school and that a terrible terror was coming up the stairs in that very moment.
'Oh no!' I thought when I realized that the footsteps getting even louder with each passing second. Jumping out of bed, I tidied my room as fast as a machine could go and stayed on the lookout with the door to my room slightly ajar.
As the monster neared. I counted the steps it had taken to me bedroom door and silently waited for death.
'Goodbye cruel world.' I thought as I waited for the beast to burst in. A few thuds sounded out as the beast rapidly tapped on my door and bellowed out;
"Y'all better wake up! Otherwise, you are going to be late." came a voice, ever so loud, making me flinch in place. Turns out, there was no monster. Just my elder brother, Oliver Star.
'Argh, so loud in the morning.' I thought, a little peeved at having to wake so early in the morning. It was just seven and I was no morning person.
"June, get out of bed right now and help me wake the rest up. You all have things to be doing!"
"Oliver, would it kill you not to scream so early in the morning? You will scare someone to death in their sleep at this rate!" comes another voice at from the end of the hall.
'I think that was Tristan.' I think as I roll around in bed, procrastinating my life choices, wondering when I had return to my sorry excuse of a life. Yes, mornings make me feel like this. I have four brothers and three of them are NOT morning people. I am really not a morning person either. Guess who the early bird is.
I stumble to my door as I think of what to wear to school later on. My bony figure is hard to style. I guess I will have to ask Spencer for help again.
"Good morning Olive." I say as I stifle a yawn with the back of my hand while looking at my eldest brother as he rummages the drawers in the hallway. I wonder who even puts those in a hallway.
"Good morning to you too! Now get up and help me with those lazy hounds." He yells to me as soon as he spots me.
"Those are your brothers!" I shout back at him as he stomps down the stairs.
'Wonder what has his panties in a twist?' I think as I look at his disappearing back.
As I stare on, I realize that he was already in a suit, he's usual work attire. He must really be trying to get there on time. I look to the other doors as my other brothers all exit their rooms with bed hair and nests a top their heads. The twins in particular looked rather horrendous in their mismatched pajamas and their rainbow colored hair.
"Pfft, you guys had better takeout that dye otherwise mama bear downstairs is going to have your heads." Says Spencer with a chuckle as I join in with laughter at the twins. Yeah, Oliver is definitely going to eat their eyes out. Like Spencer said, he is like the mother of us all and no mother would like her kids with dyed hair, especially not rainbow dye.
"Ahhh, I had better go and get ready. Mama bear is definitely going to come up here."
I close my door and slump onto the floor. I look around and sigh in relief, thinking that I am safe and that all I had dreamt was just that, a dream. But nigh, wishes aren't horses, so the poor man can't ride. The rock in my heart had been firmly lodged in. It simply couldn't move and it make me feel suffocated and oppressed.
The night's languid dream flashes right before me making me question reality. The lucid images that appear make me shiver in fear as I hug my legs closer to my chest and squeeze my eyes shut. Steps sound out in the room and I feel goosebumps rise on my skin.
"Scrrreeeee…"
A sound akin to that of a banshee sounds out making me clutch my legs even closer as I feel a hot wind rush towards my body. The steps get closer and I know that it is the end.
'Please go away.' I whisper to the room as I feel my conscious sink in deeper to the darkness as it is wrapped in black arms, being pulled to the edge.
A banging in the distance constantly thrums at my ear making me awaken from my stupor.
"June!... Ju… June! Ope… the… or! Please.... Count from one to ten!"
A voice flows into my ears and I am frightened by the echoes that all the sound is creating. As my back was to the door, the bangs reverberated through my body making me more aware of the danger around me. On instinct, I took a deep breath and slowly counted from one to ten.
The screeching stopped and the banging was drowned out by the sound of my counting. The black outstretched claws all retracted back into the shadows and the footsteps also disappeared.
Slowly, I stood up and took a deep breath. The door burst open and in came Spencer who enveloped me in a warm bear hug. I couldn't feel a thing for a second or two and it took a while for me to realize what had just happened.
"Take a deep breath, June. Take a slow deep breath. Everything is going to be alright." He whispered into my ear.
I opened my eyes and took in my surroundings as I left his embrace. Everything was in place. A shaky sigh left my lips as I finally understood what had happened. I looked to my other brothers who had all rushed to my room and I felt bad and sorry for them.
'What is wrong with me?'
*
The living room
"What do you think is wrong with June? She is always having hallucinations and panic attacks. It is quite strange." Came Terrance.
"Must be from that experience. It took weeks for her to be able to sleep on her own!" added Tristan.
"Oliver, should we sig her up for therapy? This can't be good." Added Spencer all slumped in a couch.
Oliver looked at his three brothers and felt at a loss. He knew something that they didn't yet he couldn't tell them.
'Is this the weight I must carry?' he asked himself.
"Let's us see her reaction and decide from there." Replied Oliver as he walked to the kitchen.
The four brothers were currently discussing what to do for June. They seemed unable to wrap their heads around her situation. Well, all except Oliver.
'Is this another way her powers are manifesting or is it a warning sign? Maybe it's something else.' He thought as he bustled about the kitchen. Lost in their own thoughts, they didn't realize that June had made her way down the stairs.
*
'Wow, they sure are lost in their own worlds and thoughts.' I thought as I stared at my brothers. Oliver had an apron on making something at the stove while the twins were downing cups of coffee. Wait, coffee?
"When did the two of you start to like coffee?" I asked with arms crossed at my chest. The two immediately spurted out the dark brown liquid, staining the white table top and splattering it all over the place with some landing on Oliver's suit.
"Why would you do that?!" bellowed Oliver with flaming eyes.
"Hey, don't put the blame on us. Blame her!" they replied in sync causing me to chortle.
"June, you can't tease your elders like that." Came Spencer. Yeah right, I can't.
'As if I will listen to you.' I thought mischievously. My brothers are such worrywarts when it comes to me. Makes me want to wreak havoc to distract them.
"You guys will age faster than me at this rate. You are all gloomy and sulky yet I am here looking up to the future. Come on, cheer up!" I tell them as I walk to my seat at the kitchen table.
"Always acting like the tough guy. What is your problem?" Spencer started. Guess I am not glossing this over like the last few times.
"I will be fine guys. We have school and work. Don't you have to get to work soon Oliver?" I replied trying to change the topic. I looked to their faces expectantly, waiting for them to drop the issue of my attacks.
Honestly, it hasn't been easy for me just as it has been hard on them ever since that incident. My mind has constantly broken down only to be built again and again. It was a never ending cycle that caused a lot of scaring leading to the various attacks that I keep on getting.
'Sigh! Get a hold of yourself, June Star. You can't be like this all the time.' I thought to myself. I really shouldn't be feeling sorry for myself. It would be too silly for me to do so.
"Whatever. Just help me, June. There's an emergency at work and I can't be late."
"Huh? At work? Aren't like the boss or something?" I throw the question back as I reach for the juice jug. I wait for an answer but Oliver seems to either have not heard or he is choosing to not respond to it.
'Funny how we live in the same house and are siblings but I don't even know what he does!' I think frustrated. I sigh as I trudge to the toaster.
"Alright, Olive. What do you need help with?" I reply as the twins' chuckles ring out through the kitchen. Yeah, laugh while you can. Laugh all you want. Oliver and I got to finishing with while the other three cleaned up. Yes, equality at its best.
"I can't believe that you have no sense of style despite being a girl." Came Spencer as I placed a plate of waffles in front of him. Terrance looked to me and just shook his head like I was some lost cause making me look down at my outfit.
A lack oversized tee and a pencil skirt. What's so wrong with this?
"Winter break is soon coming. I will show that bastard that I have a sense of style." I said as I threw my hands to my hips. The three boys just burst into laughter. Can't say I blame them; I would also laugh at me.
Mornings are always like this. Oliver the eldest trying to wake us up and failing miserably, me trying to help balance it all while the rest be pains in the a$$! Sigh, I wonder how it would be with parents around here.
That's right, we are orphans. It's just me and my four brothers. Oh, I haven't introduced myself.
Hello, my name is June Star and this is my story. You see we've lived for a pretty long time as early as 2045. I know you're going to say it's short, but come on. It's the 31st century we are talking of here. Names are no longer as long as they were back in the 2000's. People aim for being cool or something like that. I don't necessarily keep up with the trends.
Anyway, we lost our parents when I was 25. I was so devastated! I know what you're thinking of right now. You are probably thinking; June, you were old enough to deal with it. Well, yes but when you are cursed with a blessing of immortality, you find it harder to accept the loss of loved ones. Yes, immortal. They were a thousand, maybe two years old. Though my brothers still say that they died naturally, I still deny it.
Our parents were a hardworking couple. They left us a company where Oliver is CEO. He is, I don't know how old (we easily lose track) and super loud. He keeps us together and sane. My other brothers are interested in their own lines of work. The twins; Terrance and Tristan, are lawyers. I seriously don't know why they both chose this profession, but whatever. They are actually good at it anyway. They are as the devilish duo. Tristan and Terrance Star are super identical and comical and also annoying, again identical. They make sure we don't have thoughts of suicide. Living for close to hundred years still looking like a twenty-year-old, it becomes too much.
Then there is Spencer. He's the fashion designer of the family. He has his own clothing line and people die for his ingenious designs. I have to say, they are pretty cool. I'm the youngest of the group and the last born. I am at university ad I feel like being a jack of all trades so I have taken a while without joining the work scene. I have a few educational achievements to my name and I am working towards increasing them. Enough of all that.
We live in a world far different from yours.
How different? Well, we have dimensional travels and the like. Also, no books to school. That has to be the greatest improvement over the years. We have blue leaf trees and purple roses. Ok, I don't know why there was a mutation in the different plant and animal species over the years but they look pretty cool. The governments of the world rarely ever say anything about this preferring to be quiet about it. People can breathe normally anyway so they are fine with it all. Now, let me get back to present day as I am stuck in a huge dilemma.
"What should I wear?" I yelled internally as I flung my clothes about. They all fell in different directions of my bedroom with some landing on my head. I was so frustrated that I didn't hear anyone enter.
"Hey, get your head out of the clothes." Says Spencer as he flicks my forehead. I was right now in my room buried in a humongous pile of clothes as I couldn't find something to wear.
"Hey Spence, a little help please." I plead with him. He is after all a famous fashion designer.
"And why should I?" he asks leaving me gob smacked under this pile of clothes. Why would he even ask such a question?!
"Because you are a cool brother who has a great eye for fashion and an impeccable taste." I say fawningly as throw the clothes off of my head and look to Spencer.
The Stars have always had good genes and Spencer picked the best of them from the genetic pool. With a chiseled chin, broad shoulders that were well rounded like a ladies and long thin legs, Spencer could pass for a girl anytime, anywhere. He had shaggy black hair that gave him a lazy look, but he had bleached it blonde so it just gave him a more feminine look.
His color bones that were slightly exposed given his oversized cardigan were rather sexy but they looked especially appealing since they had a seductive blotch of red on them. Smirking, I decided to find trouble.
"Oh dear brother, I didn't know that blush could be used to make the collar bones more prominent. Good job, I should take a picture and save it for future purposes." I say as I hurriedly pull out my phone and aim it at him. He tried to pull the cardigan closed but I was faster and I manage to get some blackmail material. What? A girl's got to survive somehow!
"June! Tell anyone and you are so done for!" he threatened and I know that he meant it. My brothers are weird. Whenever they get angry, those gentlemanly faces are thrown out the window and they can look like devils. Right now, that's how Spencer is looking at me. I know he won't do anything but it's a little scary, so much so that I am trembling. Spencer is gay and I am the only one who knows of this.
This might sound crazy but Oliver says that we should keep ourselves for our companions, mates, fated ones or whatever. I don't really understand as I am not inclined to get down and dirty but I am sure that my three other brothers already have done that, especially Spencer. Noticing my expression, he seemed to come to his senses and took a deep breath.
"Little Star, sorry if scared you." He says as he walks to me and ruffles my hair. He walks to my pile before picking out some slightly damaged mom jeans, a sleeveless crop top and a belt. He goes to my dressing table and picks out some simple jewelry and make up along with a cardigan.
"This should work for today." He says embarrassedly while shifting his legs around. Is he nervous?
"Please keep it a secret for now. They can't know." He adds as he looks to the ground.
Even though my brother is way older than me, I realize that he still has some insecurity as a person. Funny enough, I treat this guy as my anchor and the like. And he has always been there for me.
"Till and when you are ready, no soul will know except my own. Star's honor." I say as I lift my hand up, swearing an oath. A little bright light sparks in the room but I take it as a flicker of sunlight while Spencer seems shocked. He simply shakes his head and walks to me.
As there was a lot of stuff on the floor, he tumbled over a marten boot of mine that had me guffawing in laughter. He gives me the stink eye from his place on the floor before shaking his head, a grin adorning his face. I walk to him intending to help him up while hiding my smile but he instead he gives my outstretched hand a tug making me topple over into his embrace. I revel in the warmth of his hug until Oliver's thundering voice makes us jump in our positions.
"June, Spencer, you two had better come down and get ready to leave or so help me I will whip you both into shape!" he bellows making me giggle. Oliver is a true motherly figure.
"He wouldn't do it now would he?" I say while lifting my head up to look at Spencer who just give me a smirk. Oliver wouldn't whip me, would he?